Pipe organ



A. J. ...CHASE PIPE ORGAN Sept. 4, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 24, 1948 /N vE/vroR www ATTORNE YS Sept. 4, 1951 A. J. CHASE 2,566,599

PIPE ORGAN Filed Feb. 24, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 E -l LL v /NvS/VTOR ARTHUR J @HAS/5 Patented Sept. 4, 1951` UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PIPE ORGAN Arthur James Chase, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application February 24, 1948, Serial No. 10,252

6 Claims.

The present invention relates to pipe organs, and has particular reference to improvements in the design and construction of pipe organs providing an organ characterized by improved tonality.

An obiect of the present invention is to provide an easily transportable pine organ of reduced overall dimension and weight. having the playing characteristics o1' large size, more eX- pensr'e organs.

A further object of the invention is to provide an electrically operated nine organ wherein the operational characteristics of large sized organs may be obtained with markedly reduced expenditure of money and space, in combination with a novel method for the production of tones in pipe organs.

A further object is to provide a novel pipe organ having a manual or manuals in detachable association with the tone chest.

A further obiect is to provide an organ pipe of novel construction and reduced scale of dimension constructed of synthetic materials such as plastics and having improved tonal qualities, the pipe being operated by low wind pressures to produce a low amplitude sound wave, and a method of forming and controlling the tone of individual plastic organ pipes.

A further object is to provide an improved electrical ampliiication system for use with pipe organs whereby low amplitude sound waves may be amplied without distortion of fundamentals or partials, whereby a particular desired tone color may be achieved.

Yet a further object is to provide a novel miniature pipe for use with pipe organs having tone producing qualities which upon ampliiication achieve full timbre and power, with the desired proper balance of partials in relation to the fundamental.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description thereof taken in connection with the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view of the invention, showing the detachable association of the manual and the organ chest;

Figure 2 is a View taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1; c

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the electrical contact means employed;

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of means for securing the manual to the organ chest;

Figure 5 is a perspective View of the hook means shown in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a view in vertical elevation of the organ chest showing the positioning of the organ pipes and amplication system;

Figure "I is a vertical cross-sectional view of a preferred form of organ pipe for use with the invention; and

Figure 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a further form of organ pipe which may be em.- ployed.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, the numeral IU refers to a console chest provided with a manual II having kev banks shown as two in number, I2 and I3. The manual II may be of simple construction as shown, including suitable stops, single or plural pedal key banks, and other player operated tone controls of varied number and arrangement in accordance with conventional design and construction.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, means are provided for detachably associating the manual I I with the console chest IU, whereby the manual may be detached from the chest I0 for purposes of facilitating transportation of the organ. Said means include a plate I4 secured to the manual casing 23 by screws I5, the plate I4 being provided with a projecting hook I6 cast or otherwise formed integrally therewith. The wall 26 of the console chest I B normally adjacent the manual casing 23 is indented at II and provided with a horizontal rod I 8 supported by a frame I9 for engagement With the hook IB to support the manual in playing position. Once the hook I5 is engaged with the rod I8, the manual II is carried under its own weight downwardly to place the casing 23 firmly adjacent the chest wall 2S.

Means are provided for establishing breakable electrical connections in the circuits between the manual controls and the pipe playing mechanism in the console chest. These circuits normally are energized by manipulation of the keys and stop tablets on the manuals to eiect the play on the organ, through switch controls in the console chest which are of conventional design and number, not shown. As shown in Figures 2 and 3, a breakable connection may be provided in the circuit of each key and stop tablet on the manuals or any desired combination thereof, determined by the operating characteristics of the organ. The connections include a contact plate 2l of brass or copper secured by screws 22 to the wall 23 of the manual I I normally resting adjacent the console chest I0 when the manual is attached in playing position. A contact pin 24 may be provided to receive a Wirev 25, leading to a key or stop tab. The wall 26 of the console chest I0 is provided with an indentation 21 receiving a spring contact 28 secured by a suitable fastener 29 attached to a wire 39 leading to the usual switch controls in the chest for actuation of the organ pipes. Two similar contacts 28a may be provided on the opposed walls 23 and 26 respectively, connecting a source of current supply to the manual il. Thus, it will be observed that upon assembly of the manual Il and console chest I0, operating circuits associated with the play of the organ are established by engagement of the opposed contact members 2l and 28, which are maintained in iiush position by the force exerted by the weight of the manual il pivoting downwardly on the hook i6.

As shown in Figure 6, the-console chest I9 preferably is constructed of materials acoustically insulating the chest, such as rock wool 3| or other soft, fibrous material carried on an outer casing of wood-or other desired material, forming an organ pipe enclosure 32 which inhibits reflection of.v sound waves fromV the walls with resultant formation of uneven tones detracting from a desired melodic tonality. The iibrous material 3| may advantageously be secured with an inner fibrous mat 3 la', which serves to anchor the loose fibrous material 3l in place. The pipe enclosure 32 contains the usual electric motor 33 and blower 34 enclosed within a housing 35 acoustically insulatedv from the organ pipe enclosure 32 by nbrous material 36, which also may be secured in'place by a brous mat 36a. Air supply ducts or trunks 31 supply air through air intakes 38, to the organ pipes 39. Air sup-ply ducts 4U supply the blower 34, air being exhausted through an exit duct 4I in the base of the chest I0.

' In accordance with the present invention, tones are produced. by passing. a tone producing medium such as air at a selectedor predetermined pressure, through organ pipes dimensioned to produce low amplitude sound waves of desired pitch at the selected pressure and electrically amplifying thetonesto normal amplitude. In practice, the wave amplitude.` sought is such that the toneproduced` is just audible to the. ear, and cannot be heard outside the tone chamber of the organ. To achieve this objective,

the organ' pipes 39 are constructed on a scale of dimensions permitting the use of much lower wind pressures thanused conventionally, for example as low as l/iinch wind pressure, monometric watergauge. In practice, a wind pressure of 1/2 inch is used, and wind pressures up to one inch are satisfactory. It has been found that by reducing the diameters of'conventional pipes from one halftoV onefth the w-idth of standard organ pipemeasurements, the` lengths remaining standard, the low wind pressureemployed produces-a very low amplitude soundwave which retains complete integrity of tone upon amplification, bringing out a better balance of the partials in their relation to the fundamentals, giving a particular desired tone color.

The organ pipes of the invention may be constructed of wood,` metal,- paper and synthetic materials such as plastics; care being taken to form the pipes of materials having densities capable of producing desired tone.- timbres. For example, a pipe approximately twenty two inches long from the lower lip to thev upper end, with a mouth of nine sixteenths ofi-an inch wide and a depth from the inside upper lip to inside bottomlip of ve eighths of an inch 'and an inside mouth of approximately one quarter inch, willv tune to lower C at a low amplitude, employing a wind pressure of one half inch. This pipe may be constructed on one eighth inch pipe, or paper or plastics of the same densities as pine.

For best results, it is preferred to construct the organ pipes of the invention of synthetic materials. It is well known that the length, diameter, density of texture, vibrating qualities, and wall thickness' of materials employed in organ pipe construction are positive factors in tone and pitch production. It has been discovered that synthetic materials such as plastics and resins arer particularly adaptable for this purpose. Different desired tone timbres may be obtained by employing fillers for the synthetic materials such as mineral llers, flour, fabrics and the like, the amount of ller to be employed in a particular instance being determined by the timbre desired and the factor of pipe wall thickness. The specific plastic or resin employed depends upon the tonal properties. desired in a particular organ pipe. Various combinations of. diiferentplastics and/or resins may be employed advantageously to obtain desired tone and thermal properties. It has been found, for example, that vinyl polymers such as polyvinyl chloride acetate, have muchlower'thermal expansion andithermal conductivity than metals, lowering variance in kpitch resulting from these variable factors to almost nil, in addition providing improved tone quality and performance. commercially available synthetic materials such as menthyl methacrylate resin known commercially as Lucite, and. such plastics as4 Plexiglas may be employed to advantage.

The plastics which are normally hard but become moldable'ewhen heated, such asvinyl polymers, cellulose derivatives and. styrol` resins may be preferred' when it is desired to modify the structure of the pipe subsequentto. initial formation in order to vary the pipe tonal character such as pitch. These synthetic materials may be classified as thermoplastic plastic compounds, contrasting with'thermosetting plastics. It istc beA understood, however, that any synthetic material fallingwithin the conventional designation of plastic, includinguresins and resinous type plastics, may be employed inv carrying out the invention, to realize the above enumerated advantages of this new-type of organ pipe.

As shown in Figures '7 and 8, the organ pipes 39 maybe of the usual form, either round in cross section as shown, or rectangular. The pipe 39 is provided with a mouth 42, an intake vent 43, and may be open at the top at 44, asshowmor stopped. An important feature of the invention resides in the provision of means for adjustingthe tone color of the individual plastic pipe 39, after fabrication of the basic pipe structure shown. This is accomplished by controllingthe velocity of the air passing through the pipe 39, through the provision of partial closures or nodes along the length of -thepipe, as indicated at 45.

' According to the preferred method of 'theinvention, the plastic is heated to the correct temperature for softening and compressed' with a simple shaping tool, not shown, deforming the structure inwardly about the pipe circumference at desired nodalpoints along its length. The shaped plastic section of the pipe is then cooled.

The partial closures 46 and 4T shownin Figure 8 may be ofthe same dimension or may vary in dimension in accordance with tone color requirements for a particulary pipe 39. If the partial ascuas 5, closure 46 nearer the 'intake 43 is the deeper, the `segment of the pipe 39 defined by the upper closure 41 will have a weaker sound wave. Inversely, if the partial closure 46 is the deeper, the sound Wave is strengthened. The number of partial closures 45 employed in a particular instance may vary with the individual pipe tonal qualities desired, taking into consideration the basic requirements of pipe material density, di-

mension, and initial wind velocity, which are primarily determinative of pipe tonal qualities such as timbre.

Referring now to Figure 6, in view of the very low Wind pressures employed in playing the organ a correspondingly low amplitude sound wave is produced by the organ pipes 39. A novel system of amplification is provided which ampliiies the A-sound waves to achieve a desired standard volume of tone, for example, approximately two hundred times, without distortion.

The amplification equipment includes a microphone 48 suspended inside an acoustically insulated box 49, suspended upon springs 50 secured to the inside surface of the chamber I0. The microphone 48 is wired to a conventional amplier assembly including an amplier control unit and a loud speaker, not shown in the drawings. It is preferred that the microphone 48 be suspended in the box 49 upon springs 5| hooked into a non-metallic vibration dampening attachment 52 which may be leather or fabric. A plurality of tone trumpets 53 are secured to the sound box 49 for purposes of picking up sound waves from the ranks of pipes 39 and communicating the Waves evenly to the microphone 48 through ducts markedly accurate tone modulation and blending, t

may be accomplished by manipulation of the dampers 54 of the trumpets 53.

It will be observed that the present invention provides a novel pipe organ operating on a new principle of sound control and reproduction,

whereby the overall dimension of the organ may be reduced considerably from that of conventional organs without sacrificing any desirable operational characteristics of the larger organs. The reduction in wind pressures employed permits of using simplified, less expensive equipment, and the organ pipe of the invention produces a very low amplitude sound wave which may be amplified without distortion of fundamentals or partials, giving the particular color tone desired.

The pipes employed may be constructed of Wood, metal. or paper. However, best results are obtained by employing plastics having material densities adjusted in accordance with the vibrational characteristics desired in the pipe, the pipe being further modified by nodular deformation to achieve an exact desired characteristic tonal quality.

The provision of a detachable manual permits of movement of the organ in the door of any residence or building without structural modifica-tion of theA door or chambers of the residence.

The amplification system permits of fine-adjustment of tonal qualities, producing a tone rich Y and full in timbre and power. The new method of tone production brings out a better balance of the partials in their relations to the fundamental than has been accomplished heretofore through amplication of tones initially very low in amplitude, with proper positioning and adjustment of the amplification equipment relative to the tone sources.

The invention has been set'forth herein with reference to the specific structures described and shown in the drawings, for purposes of description only, and is not to be regarded as'limited thereby, except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprising passing a tone producing medium under predetermined pressure through organ pipes dimensioned to produce low amplitude sound waves of desired pitch at the predetermined pressure, and amplifying the low amplitude sound waves to produce tones of normal amplitude characterized by balanced tonal relationship and integrity of tone color.

2. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprising passing air at reduced pressure through organ pipes dimensioned to produce low amplitude sound waves at the selected low pressure providing an audible tone of desired pitch and sub-normal amplitude, and electrically amplifying the low amplitude sound waves to produce tones of normal amplitude at the4 desired pitch characterized by balanced tonal relationship and integrity of tone color.

3. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprising passing air at a pressure between one quarter and one half inch wind pressure, monometric water gauge, through pipes reduced in cross-sectional dimension to produce low amplitude sound waves of a desired pitch at the selected pressure, and electrically amplifying the low amplitude sound waves to produce tones of normal amplitudes characterized by integrity of tonal relationship and tone color.

4. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprising passing air at a pressure between one quarter and one half inch wind pressure, monometric water gauge, through pipes dimensioned to produce low amplitude sound waves of a desired pitch at the selected wind pressure, controlling the velocity of air passing through selected pipes to modify the characteristic low amplitude sound waves normally produced by the pipes, and electrically amplifying the sound waves of characteristic and corrected low amplitude to produce tones of normal amplitudes characterized by integrity of tonal relationship and tone color.

5. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprising passing air at a pressure between one quarter inch and one inch wind pressure, monometric water gauge, through organ pipes to produce low amplitude sound Waves of a desired pitch at the selected pressure in a tone chamber, dampening out selected low amplitude sound waves in the tone chamber, and electrically amplifying the screened low amplitude sound waves in the tone chamber to produce tones of normal amplitudes characterized by integrity of tonal relationship and tone color.

6. The method of producing tones in a pipe organ comprislngpassing air at a pressure between one quarter inch and one inch Wind pressure, monometric water gauge, through organ pipes dimensioned to produce low amplitude sound Waves of a desired pitch at the selected pressureV in a tone chamber, the sound Waves being of an amplitudel approaching inaudibility, shaping selected pipes to control the velocity of Wind passage through said pipes to modify further the characteristic low amplitude of the sound waves normally produced by the selected pipes, dampening out selected low amplitude sound waves in the tone chamber, and electrically amplifying thel screened low amplitude sound waves in the tone chamber to produce tones of normal amplitudes characterized by integrity of tonal relationship and tone color.

ARTHUR JAMES CHASE.

8 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record inth'e le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 989,958 Frahm Apr. *18,V 1911 1,165,288 Rimmer -Dec. 21, 1915 1,170,627 Garl Feb. 8, 1916 1,243,280 Frost Oct. 16,V 1917 1,589,408 Maxeld June 22, 1926 1,678,842 Aiken JulyV 31, 1928 1,805,362 Ellis May 12,1931 1,969,424 Puget Aug. 7, 1934 1,969,591 Willis Aug. 7, 1934 2,191,058 Jarnak Feb. 20, 1940 2,191,734 Wick Feb. 27, 1940 2,460,408 Babicky Feb. 1, 1949 2,474,042 Eyle June 21, 1949 

